Grateful for 51 Years

In honor of today’s 51st anniversary of Doctor Who, and the 1st anniversary of last year’s golden anniversary, I have re-watched An Adventure in Space and Time. I’m left feeling grateful for the amazing legacy of Doctor Who.

It is interesting that so many of these individuals were the odd one out in their own unique ways. Sydney Newman was not initially well-received at the BBC, being seen as an outsider. Verity Lambert was the youngest and first female drama producer at the BBC. Waris Hussein faced prejudice and racism at the hands of the white, male majority of the BBC at the time.

Despite the obstacles, they persisted. There was, of course, no possible way for any of them to even wonder if Doctor Who would have a run of 52 years and counting. Yet, they must of been as captured by the notion of a powerful and compassionate alien who could travel throughout the universe, having adventure and making it a better place as we are.

I believe Doctor Who touches so many people, because so many can find their own dreams and fantasies (and fears) reflected within the stories. I believe we also find our comfort in the Doctor. With so many Doctors over the years, it would be difficult to not find comfort in at least one of them-the silliness of Two or Eleven, the dashing romance of Ten, the science of Three or the the First as your first. One of them is bound to be the Doctor to our hearts and souls.

So, thank you to all the cast, crew and production teams over the years, for keeping the Doctor alive and well. I offer a special shout out to Russell T. Davies for resurrecting the Doctor and Stephen Moffat for keeping him breathing (and adventuring) so vigorously.

I am a psychologist in private practice in San Diego, CA. I have been trying to make sense of the world through the psychological lens since I gave my mother a home-made Rorschach when I was 10.
I learned to cope with that world through imagining the possibilities presented in science fiction. Anne McCaffery, David Brin, Star Trek, Susan Cooper, Tolkein, Wonder Woman, The Bionic Woman, Batman and Robin, Battlestar Gallatica....
Then, I discovered Doctor Who and it all came together in one place. Humor, wit, insatiable curiosity, adventurousness, timey-wimeyness, all rolled-up with the most enduring existential struggles we pudding brains can come up with. I was in love.
So, it is inevitable that I have begun this blog. During the season I will be posting episode analyses on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. I will also post arc analyses and extras whenever I'm feeling inspired. During the off-season I will be discussing the classic Who I am watching. I hope you enjoy!
“The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect, but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.”
-Carl Jung (Swiss Psychologist, 1875 -1961)